


heart and soul

by ErjaStark



Series: AUgust 2020 [2]
Category: Iron Man (Movies), Marvel Cinematic Universe
Genre: Alternate Universe - College/University, Cuddling & Snuggling, Established Relationship, F/M, Literal Sleeping Together, Love Confessions, This might be the cutests thing I have ever written, Tony Stark Has A Heart, Tooth-Rotting Fluff
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-02
Updated: 2020-08-02
Packaged: 2021-03-05 22:48:45
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,382
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25673083
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ErjaStark/pseuds/ErjaStark
Summary: Day 2: College AUIn Tony's opinion, a quiet evening with his girlfriend is the best way to end the day.
Relationships: Pepper Potts/Tony Stark
Series: AUgust 2020 [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1861330
Comments: 5
Kudos: 37





	heart and soul

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Moransroar](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Moransroar/gifts).



> This one is for you Rory. I fucking love ya. 
> 
> To everyone else, I hope you enjoy it! I certainly had a lot of fun writing it.

“How is your paper coming along?” Tony ask while he makes himself comfortable on the windowsill.

He’s spent the past 20 minutes tinkering with what used to be a blender but now looks more like a torture device that could appear in one of the Saw sequels. All he tried to do was improve the thing but, as it happens with so many of his creations, he apparently did the exact opposite. 

“It's nearly finished,” Pepper answers, a smirk visible on her face. 

She never says anything when he’s in the middle of working, only ever watches and observes. Tony isn’t sure if she knows that any attempt at starting a conversation would be fruitless as long as his mind is focused on something else, or if she simply enjoys watching him. Whichever the case, she never tries to pull him away from his work (unless he’s set himself on fire, that is) and he loves her all the more for it. 

Pepper is still smiling at him by the time Tony finally finds a comfortable enough position on the ledge, right opposite of his girlfriend with his back leaning against the wall. 

“What?” 

“Nothing. I’m simply wondering how you’re going to explain to Rhodey that you’ve destroyed yet another one of your kitchen utensils.” She nudges his leg with her foot. “Is there anything left that you haven’t taken apart yet?”  
  
He actually has to take a moment to think about it. 

“The new microwave. I haven’t touched it unless I wanted to use it for its intended purpose.” 

Granted, he’s nearly gotten both himself and Rhodey expelled by blowing up the old one and caused the entire building to be evacuated. That was the day he had to promise Rhodey to stop indulging in his more daring ideas. 

“Rhodey is finally learning how to keep you under control,” Pepper muses, causing a grin much like her own to spread across Tony’s face. 

“Yeah, he’s good at that,” he admits before pushing himself off the wall and crawling towards her on his hands and knees, only stopping when his face is inches away from her own. Pepper tilts her head, watching him curiously. “But not as good as you are.” 

He’s told her so countless times before and it must have gotten to the point where it is boring to hear him say it - but Tony loves her laugh. No matter how angry or upset he is, all it takes is Pepper and her good mood to lift his own spirit. He was reluctant to tell her _that_ much, afraid that he’d come across as too cliché, at least until she admitted that she felt the exact same thing. 

“No one is,” she says and there is no arrogance behind her words. 

She’s simply stating a fact, one he has no problem admitting to being correct. By now, most of his friends know so as well. Pepper can keep him in check better than anyone, probably because she doesn’t do it unless she deems it truly necessary - which most often means that she’s scared he’s going to hurt himself. 

It’s hard to get angry at someone when they only have your best interest in mind. 

“Hey.” Pepper’s hand in his hair pulls him out of his thoughts. He’s still only inches apart from her and this close, he can see just how blue her eyes are. Even with the sun already beginning to disappear, Tony sees. He also sees the amusement in them. “Where are you?”  
  
“Right here.” 

His whispered reply gets rewarded with a soft kiss. Just like it’s the case with her laugh, he loves her kisses, could spend all day doing nothing but kissing her over and over again until their lips hurt. Sadly, Pepper never agrees with him on that, saying that one of them has to be the responsible one. 

She pulls away way too soon and Tony makes a displeased noise as he chases after her mouth. He is certain that she tries to say something but the words are lost when his lips find hers once again. He kisses her with everything he has, enjoying the way her hand tightens in his hair.  
  
His own fingers curl themselves into the fabric of her hoodie, which is actually Tony’s but he’s long ago accepted that once his clothes fall into Pepper’s hands, they are as good as lost to him. She looks much better in them anyway and he’d be a fool to say that the thought of her running around her room and smelling like him wouldn’t turn him on. 

“I love you,” he says as soon as he pulls back. 

Pepper beams up at him and presses one last lingering kiss to his lips. She’s much less vocal about her feelings than Tony is, a fact that surprises almost everyone - but she wouldn't put up with nearly as much as she does if she didn’t love him, of that he is sure. Anyone who drives across town in the middle of the night to bail his drunk ass out of jail is worth fighting for. 

Tony silently manoeuvres them around until they are both sitting on the same side of the wide windowsill, tightly pressed against each other. He’s got his arm wrapped around her and Pepper has her head resting on his shoulder as they look out the window and down at the campus below. The U-shaped layout of the building gives them a great view of almost everything.

They continue to watch the fall day slowly come to an end, content and at peace. 

It’s only when the sun has completely disappeared from view that Pepper speaks up again. 

“How are your classes?” 

“Boring,” Tony replies quickly, not in the mood to talk about something as unimportant as that. He feels Pepper’s body shake in silent laughter and presses a kiss to the side of her head. “But they are going well. Rhodey makes sure that I attend most of them regularly, so there is nothing you have to worry about.” 

“I always worry about you,” she says, making Tony laugh, although he doesn’t even try to keep quiet. 

“Which makes me a very lucky man.” 

“Indeed, it does.” 

Pepper turns until she’s able to throw one of her arms, as well as one of her legs over his body, effectively clinging to him. Tony is once again thankful for how large the window sill is. Beside the bed, it’s his favourite place for them to cuddle. 

He pulls her as close as possible and proceeds to press kisses to her cheek and forehead, noticing that, somewhere in the process, Pepper’s eyes fall close and her breathing begins to even out. Not hearing any objection from her, Tony continues until it becomes clear that she has fallen asleep in his arms. He waits until he hears the first snore (not that Pepper snores, she’s told him so herself) before he takes her into his arms and lifts her up. 

It takes a bit of time, given their location and the fact that she’s slightly taller than him but Tony eventually manages to get her into his bed. He makes his way over to the window to close it, careful not to wake her. 

He strips himself of his shirt and trousers, leaving them on his desk chair in case Rhodey decides to come back to their room some time in the night. The last thing Tony needs is to be woken up by his friend because he’s decorated the floor with his dirty clothes. 

Pepper makes a noise and turns, clearly unhappy about being left alone. Tony returns to her as quickly as possible, scared that she’s going to wake up. He lays down next to her and pulls the covers over both their bodies, though Pepper seems content with using him as a blanket, snuggling close as soon as she’s able to. 

Tony doesn’t complain. He doubts that he ever will, not when burying his nose in her hair makes him feel this good. It’s also the easiest way for him to fall asleep, something he’s reminded of when it takes no more than a few minutes for him to drift off and follow his girlfriend to a safer place.

**Author's Note:**

> If you have any requests, feel free to drop them [here](https://pepperonyspizza.tumblr.com/)


End file.
